Prabhas' Kalki 2898 AD to Allu Arjun's Pushpa 2 and Dhanush's Kubera: 7 upcoming Telugu films with a mythological touch

Mythology seems to be the flavour of the day for these Tollywood films. Are they blowing with the social winds or celebrating Indian culture?

When Allu Arjun said in an interview with News 9 that the younger generation is ‘owning everything about Indian tradition,’ he wasn’t kidding. The success of films like Akhanda, Kantara, Karthikeya 2 and HanuMan is proof that if made well (unlike Adipurush or Shaakunthalam), there’s potential for films based on Indian mythology to rake in massive numbers at the box office.

Prabhas, Allu Arjun, Tamannaah Bhatia in Kalki 2898 AD, Pushpa 2 and Odela 2.

Call it a celebration of Indian culture (and history, as some like to believe) or anything else, if the upcoming line-up of Telugu films are anything to go by, they’re clearly here to stay.

Adhira, Jai Hanuman

Director Prasanth Varma alone has two films already lined up after Teja Sajja-starrer HanuMan. Adhira, which will star producer DVV Danayya’s son Kalyan Dasari, seems based on Lord Indra, as hinted in promotional material. The film, which was announced in 2022, sees the debutant in a hooded cloak with a sword resembling a spine in his hand as lightning strikes.

Jai Hanuman, which will focus more on Lord Hanuman, is also in the works with the lead role yet to be cast.

Kalki 2898 AD

Nag Ashwin’s Prabhas, Deepika Padukone, Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan-starrer Kalki 2898 AD might be sci-fi fantasy but its roots stand firmly in the Mahabharata. Talking at the Synapse 2024 event in Gurgaon, the director confirmed the connection.

What’s more, the title is a giveaway that the film will be based on the lore of Kalyug and Kalki avatar, with the makers recently announcing that Amitabh plays Dronacharya’s son, the immortal and cursed Ashwatthama in the film.

Kannappa

Unlike the last three films in the list, this one is a little more straightforward. Directed by Mukesh Kumar Singh and produced by Mohan Babu, the hagiographical film Kannappa, will see Vishnu Manchu in the titular role as the devotee of Shiva. Akshay Kumar, Mohanlal and Prabhas will also have cameo in the film, as gods from Indian mythology.

The film’s promotional material so far shows it to be a straight-forward mythological drama, much like Nagarjuna’s 1997 film Annamayya but it remains to be seen if there’ll be a modern twist to the tale.

Kubera

Sekhar Kammula’s Kubera, starring Dhanush, Rashmika Mandanna, Nagarjuna and Jim Sarbh is set in the modern day and age but the film’s title hints at a deeper meaning.

When the makers released Dhanush’s first look from the film, he looked unkept with a long beard and hair, dressed in tattered clothes. The wall behind him saw a painting of Lord Shiva taking alms from Goddess Annapurna. Kubera is known as the richest god, so it remains to be seen how Sekhar will weave in this detail into the film.

Odela 2

While the story of this sequel to Suddala Ashok Teja and Sampath Nandi’s 2022 film Odela Railway Station is not revealed, Tamannaah Bhatia plays Shiva Shakti, a naga sadhu in the film.

In a new video released by the makers, the actor can be seen with matted locks, kohl-lined eyes and saffron marking her forehead. The makers are yet to reveal what the mythological angle of the film is. Odela 2 will see Hebbah Patel, Vasishta N Simha, Murali Sharma and Srikanth Iyengar reprising their roles.

Pushpa 2: The Rule

When Sukumar planted the lyrics, “Gangamma thalli jaathara, kollu pottella kotharaa, katthiki neththuti poothara, devathakaina thappadhu yera, (Animals are sacrificed at the Gangamma thalli jatara and knives are coated with blood. Even the Goddess is not spared the way of this world)” in Daakko Daakko Meka in Pushpa: The Rise, little did fans know it would tie back to one of Allu Arjun’s looks in Pushpa 2: The Rule.

Most of the promotional material for the sequel seemed to hinge on the actor’s Mathangi vesham in a blue saree and body paint, apart from jewellery including a nose pin, bangles, ghungroo, jhumkas and more. Sources state that a fight scene, of which the makers shared a glimpse on Allu’s birthday, and a song have been shot with the actor in the get-up.

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